Roundup: Australia's 40 bln USD sub-contract unaffected by French security leak: gov't

The Australian government has on Wednesday downplayed concerns that its future submarine program could be at risk, after the French shipbuilder contracted to built its 12 next-generation subs suffered a massive internal leak.

The leak was reported by Australian media on Wednesday and includes more than 22,000 pages of information, including details on the six Scorpene-class submarines the French company, DCNS, designed for India.

The leak of the Scorpene-class subs also affects Malaysia, Chile and Brazil - nations which ordered those submarines from DCNS, however Australia has ordered 12 Barracuda-class subs from the shipbuilder.

DCNS won the 40 billion U.S dollar contract to build the submarines earlier this year, beating out bids from the Japanese government and from a German firm, and while Australian officials have said the leaks were concerning, they were not relevant to Australia's model.

"It is a completely different model, it is a different submarine," Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull told the Seven Network on Wednesday.

Meanwhile Defence Industry Minister Christopher Pyne said the damning, 22,400-page report has "no bearing" on the government's Future Submarine Program.

"(The) program operates under stringent security requirements that govern the manner in which all information and technical data is managed now and into the future," the statement, released on Wednesday, said.

"The same requirements apply to the protection of all sensitive information and technical data for the Collins class submarines, and have operated successfully for decades."

Despite the government's bullish outlook regarding the leak, the Australian newspaper reported the U.S government could be concerned by the details of the leak; it is set to install state-of-the-art stealth and combat systems into the Australian submarines.

If the U.S government feels the details of its revolutionary technology cannot be adequately protected, it may redact its offer to install the systems in Australia's submarines, the Australian reported.

Overnight, DCNS moved to allay Australian fears over the future of its submarines, with a statement explaining all data linked to the Australian design was absolutely protected. It said the leak of data came as a result of DCNS not being the "controller" of the Indian subs' technical data.

"Uncontrolled technical data is not possible in the Australian -arrangements," DCNS said.

"Multiple and independent controls exist within DCNS to prevent unauthorized access to data and all data movements are encrypted and recorded.

"In the case of India, where a DCNS design is built by a local company, DCNS is the provider and not the controller of technical data.

"In the case of Australia DCNS is both the provider and in-country controller of technical data for the full chain of transmission and usage over the life of the submarines."

Despite the DCNS statement, Senator Nick Xenophon described the leaks as "very concerning", and called for an inquiry into the security of the Australian contract.

"This is really quite disastrous to have thousands of pages of your combat system leaked in this way," the Independent Senator said on Wednesday, "I am very concerned about this."

DCNS won the defence contract - worth 40 billion U.S dollars - in April, with the submarines expected to hit the water in 2030. Endit